Impression of the ZELEX SLE 172E body with 201 head

[KKFun]

Durability Test Completed

It has been around 6 months now, with 100s of dresses on and off, and all the movings, and postures, she is as new as day 1 at home. She has passed my durability test now, at least from a photo model point of view.

As a matter of fact, after discussing with a lot of experienced doll owners, dressing up and undressing are high-wearing events to surface painting. She has zero paint fading at all.

All her joints are as tight as day 1 too. The EXP skeleton has passed my durability test as well.

I have absolutely zero issues with the SLE material. For the test, I mentioned it before, I left the photo postures overnight, even sometimes very stressful for the silicone to see if she could hold up without tearing, she could handle it perfectly. Although I would not recommend this, in general, if high-stress postures, PLEASE don't leave her there for too long. For long-term storage postures, she should be as close as possible to the postures during the molding phase.

We can tell from a raw photo of the previous artwork, she is in perfect shape.

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[4891d]

Good news on durability!
And even more impressive is the quality/price ratio. With a very good quality skeleton, in addition to other qualities, Zelex sets the bar very high.

The only thing missing is to add a 155 - 158 cm doll to the range, with a fairly slender silhouette, which would make this range accessible to those who cannot or do not want to manage the fairly heavy weight of the current models.

[KKFun]

Good news on durability!
And even more impressive is the quality/price ratio. With a very good quality skeleton, in addition to other qualities, Zelex sets the bar very high.

The only thing missing is to add a 155 - 158 cm doll to the range, with a fairly slender silhouette, which would make this range accessible to those who cannot or do not want to manage the fairly heavy weight of the current models.

Thanks 4891d, agree with you. ZELEX does very well with the SLE. They are TPE price, but even higher quality than other competitors with 1.5-2 times more expensive silicone version. No wonder they sell SLE like hot cakes

Focusing on weight reduction would be a good future direction too.

[BigFrank666]

Thanks BigFrank666, my SLE might belong to the very early batch as well. If ZELEX changed any subtle thing later for improvement, my SLE would not have that.

It seems to me the SLE head I have is very soft as well. Much softer than other Inspiration Series heads I own.

I read Mishka's review as well, he did mention the damage of the lips. He also mentioned it could have been avoided if he removed the teeth more carefully from the mouth.

Thanks KK. You're the first owner of this particular doll to confirm there IS a difference in the head softness. I'm wondering if I was the lucky/unlucky one that got a harder head.

When my doll arrived, my first thought before even opening the box was "did they send me the correct doll?" Why, because I'd planned on storing the empty shipping box under my bed and there's roughly 32.5cm clearance and the shipping carton size listed on Zelex's site and vendor sites show the size being 159cm x 42cm x 34cm so it wouldn't fit under my bed. The measurements of the box I received is printed right on the side: 156cm x 46cm x 31cm so I was pleasantly surprised (at first) that it would fit under my bed, BUT it made me curious as to why it was different. The box I received matches the dimensions for their 170cm C-Cup doll. So I wondered if I got the right doll? The breast size "seemed" correct, but they seem to guess at cup size rather than use the method used by bra manufacturers.

Since using a cloth measuring tape to measure parts of a doll can be off by a little because they round up or down to the nearest CM, I chose the WAIST to check the difference between my 172cm and the measurements of the 170cm because it's the largest measurable difference. The 172cm is listed as a waist of 57cm (22.6") and the 170cm has a much larger waist of 64.5cm (25.4"), nearly 3 full inches larger in diameter. My 172cm measured spot-on at 57cm, so I was relieved. (I checked MIshka1965's unboxing video and his box wasn't marked with a size at all, making me think again that he might have been sent an early prototype to review and photograph).

My other glaring difference between my 172cm doll and Mishka's is the GEL BUTT. In his video, he shows a VERY "squishy ass" so unless he has the grip strength to crack coconuts with his bare hands, his ass is MUCH softer than mine. He claims it is "as squishy as the gel breasts". My doll's ass feels about the same as a standard TPE doll's ass. I personally wouldn't have ordered the gel ass option if you could customize these SLE 172's simply for the "damage factor" that he mentions if remaining sitting, etc. for a long period of time. I'm cool with a firmer ass on a doll with a "fit physique" like this one anyway. (I also would have opted for no weight reduction if it was available. What's 10 pounds when you sacrifice so much softness? It's more of a "cost reduction" for Zelex than anything else.)

So, between the "Hard Head", incorrect shipping box size and lack of a "squishy ass", I still wonder why my doll is so different? Were they selling out so fast they had to grab whatever box was available? Did they change to a harder SLE formula in the 5 months between Mishka's review and my order because he was rough with his head and damaged it? Why does my doll's ass appear to not have gel inserts?

And finally, my doll's joints are so stiff, in the 30+ days I've had it, I have yet to be able to bend the doll's waist sideways, only front to back and rotate. And "shrugging shoulders"? I can't budge them and I'm a big strong dude. I had a SY 176cm, 126 pound doll that had the "spine" weld break off the "hip" so I'm not about to force my doll to bend. Maybe I'm the one that got a prototype that was laying around and they shipped it thinking I wouldn't notice because I'm a "doll buyer" and all we care about is speedy delivery! LOL

Either way, I'm 80% satisfied and hopefully they'll get my SLE Softer head issue resolved. I've bought 8 dolls now and have never experienced even ONE issue, let alone this many (All the way back to ordering this supposed "In Stock - US" doll, being told in an email that it was DEFINITELY shipping from the US and that SAME email contained the UPS tracking number that showed it's current location was Shenzhen, CN.) I got the doll in 6 days, anyway so why lie about where it's coming from? I've waited MONTHS before. Just get me what I paid for and be HONEST.

[KKFun]

Thanks BigFrank666, my SLE might belong to the very early batch as well. If ZELEX changed any subtle thing later for improvement, my SLE would not have that.

It seems to me the SLE head I have is very soft as well. Much softer than other Inspiration Series heads I own.

I read Mishka's review as well, he did mention the damage of the lips. He also mentioned it could have been avoided if he removed the teeth more carefully from the mouth.

Thanks KK. You're the first owner of this particular doll to confirm there IS a difference in the head softness. I'm wondering if I was the lucky/unlucky one that got a harder head.

When my doll arrived, my first thought before even opening the box was "did they send me the correct doll?" Why, because I'd planned on storing the empty shipping box under my bed and there's roughly 32.5cm clearance and the shipping carton size listed on Zelex's site and vendor sites show the size being 159cm x 42cm x 34cm so it wouldn't fit under my bed. The measurements of the box I received is printed right on the side: 156cm x 46cm x 31cm so I was pleasantly surprised (at first) that it would fit under my bed, BUT it made me curious as to why it was different. The box I received matches the dimensions for their 170cm C-Cup doll. So I wondered if I got the right doll? The breast size "seemed" correct, but they seem to guess at cup size rather than use the method used by bra manufacturers.

Since using a cloth measuring tape to measure parts of a doll can be off by a little because they round up or down to the nearest CM, I chose the WAIST to check the difference between my 172cm and the measurements of the 170cm because it's the largest measurable difference. The 172cm is listed as a waist of 57cm (22.6") and the 170cm has a much larger waist of 64.5cm (25.4"), nearly 3 full inches larger in diameter. My 172cm measured spot-on at 57cm, so I was relieved. (I checked MIshka1965's unboxing video and his box wasn't marked with a size at all, making me think again that he might have been sent an early prototype to review and photograph).

My other glaring difference between my 172cm doll and Mishka's is the GEL BUTT. In his video, he shows a VERY "squishy ass" so unless he has the grip strength to crack coconuts with his bare hands, his ass is MUCH softer than mine. He claims it is "as squishy as the gel breasts". My doll's ass feels about the same as a standard TPE doll's ass. I personally wouldn't have ordered the gel ass option if you could customize these SLE 172's simply for the "damage factor" that he mentions if remaining sitting, etc. for a long period of time. I'm cool with a firmer ass on a doll with a "fit physique" like this one anyway. (I also would have opted for no weight reduction if it was available. What's 10 pounds when you sacrifice so much softness? It's more of a "cost reduction" for Zelex than anything else.)

So, between the "Hard Head", incorrect shipping box size and lack of a "squishy ass", I still wonder why my doll is so different? Were they selling out so fast they had to grab whatever box was available? Did they change to a harder SLE formula in the 5 months between Mishka's review and my order because he was rough with his head and damaged it? Why does my doll's ass appear to not have gel inserts?

And finally, my doll's joints are so stiff, in the 30+ days I've had it, I have yet to be able to bend the doll's waist sideways, only front to back and rotate. And "shrugging shoulders"? I can't budge them and I'm a big strong dude. I had a SY 176cm, 126 pound doll that had the "spine" weld break off the "hip" so I'm not about to force my doll to bend. Maybe I'm the one that got a prototype that was laying around and they shipped it thinking I wouldn't notice because I'm a "doll buyer" and all we care about is speedy delivery! LOL

Either way, I'm 80% satisfied and hopefully they'll get my SLE Softer head issue resolved. I've bought 8 dolls now and have never experienced even ONE issue, let alone this many (All the way back to ordering this supposed "In Stock - US" doll, being told in an email that it was DEFINITELY shipping from the US and that SAME email contained the UPS tracking number that showed it's current location was Shenzhen, CN.) I got the doll in 6 days, anyway so why lie about where it's coming from? I've waited MONTHS before. Just get me what I paid for and be HONEST.

Thanks BigFrank666, Inspiration Series 170C body and SLE 172E body are very different, if you post photos, we can tell right away which one is which. 170C is a 3D human scan. I have both versions. Both are excellent photo models. SLE 172E's bottom is very very soft compared with Inspiration Series 170C default without gel butt.

Yes, the joints of EXP skeleton are very tight in both Inspiration Series and SLE. Both my Inspiration Series (after 1+ year) and SLE (after 6 months), they are as tight as day 1, very consistent and durable. I like them, but of course, some members want loose joints for playtime as well. Maybe ZELEX can offer another option in the future for us to pick the stiffness of the joints.

If the softness of the SLE head is your concern, I really don't see that as an issue.

May be you can create a new thread about your doll with a lot of photos, a lot of experienced SLE owners around here, and we can help you together in detail. I seriously doubt that they would mix the Inspiration Series and SLE components together in shipping. SLE is fast shipping/ready to ship, no customization, hence, the mistake when packaging is extremely small.

[KKFun]

Now I can confirm with confidence, the advertisement is true too. The silicone base materials are the color of the final doll, or extremely close. It means ZELEX mixes the silicone color based on the skin tone color. Therefore, it does not purely rely on the surface paint to get the result. As such, even in the future when paint fades, it will not be obvious at all. We also need to remember that surface painting is like wallpaper at home, if used enough, it will have wearings, just real-world life.

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If anyone is unfamiliar with the terms color fade/paint fade, here is an example.

This is my "PRE Inspiration Series" 170C body (around 2 years of usage and early generation), when dressing her up and undressing enough, there was paint fade around the shoulders or the high points of the body.

Congrats to ZELEX, their latest generation dolls have fixed this issue already, my SLE does not have this problem at all, the color of the body is very consistent around all the high points. Very well done ZELEX

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[KKFun]

This is a follow-up post to the previous post.

Here is the current condition of the SLE shoulder or high point.

As stated before, she is as new as day 1 Zero paint fade around the same area.

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[KKFun]

Apart from here in this thread, we will be busy in the new thread too.

viewtopic.php?t=180719

We will do more comparisons between the SLE and the Inspiration Series Ultra-soft version alongside the original Inspiration Series over there. Please stay tuned.

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[chris0113]

Incredible photo, KK. Your shots are better than many of the promos I've seen. She's very photogenic. I'm just about sold on the 172E body. She's so damn sexy!

[KKFun]

Incredible photo, KK. Your shots are better than many of the promos I've seen. She's very photogenic. I'm just about sold on the 172E body. She's so damn sexy!

Thanks chris0113. You are far too kind my friend I just enjoy what I am doing only. All ZELEX dolls are so stunning!!!!

[ZacT009]

Hi KKFun,

I just want to post a Thank You for your extensive and detailed impressions on this topic. Even so much as to post your 6 month update (has it been that long?)
It's all been very impressive through words and awesome photos.
You certainly have made it very easy (perhaps too easy) for me to make up my mind on the SLE range.

Thanks so much again for your "work". (Note to self, don't read his "Ultra Soft" thread...! )

[chris0113]

KKF, did your SLE girl come with the standing feet with bolts? I'm sorry if I missed it in this thread. I'm about ready to pull the trigger on the 171c but I store my dolls standing, and from what I've read, it's not advised with the hard (bolt-less) feet.

[KKFun]

Hi KKFun,

I just want to post a Thank You for your extensive and detailed impressions on this topic. Even so much as to post your 6 month update (has it been that long?)
It's all been very impressive through words and awesome photos.
You certainly have made it very easy (perhaps too easy) for me to make up my mind on the SLE range.

Thanks so much again for your "work". (Note to self, don't read his "Ultra Soft" thread...! )

Thanks ZacT009, you have good sense of humor, reading your post made me smile. We appreciate your trust too in the reviews too. Yeah, both SLE and Ultra soft Inspiration Series are excellent. Cant go wrong with either of them.

Like I said in many places, apart from their excellent products, their awesome customer service is the key to making them shine the most.

[KKFun]

KKF, did your SLE girl come with the standing feet with bolts? I'm sorry if I missed it in this thread. I'm about ready to pull the trigger on the 171c but I store my dolls standing, and from what I've read, it's not advised with the hard (bolt-less) feet.

All SLE comes with the standing feet with bolts. There is only 1 option.

Agree with you there, if you would store her long-term standing, then, the bolted feet would be the best choice.

[chris0113]

KKF, did your SLE girl come with the standing feet with bolts? I'm sorry if I missed it in this thread. I'm about ready to pull the trigger on the 171c but I store my dolls standing, and from what I've read, it's not advised with the hard (bolt-less) feet.

All SLE comes with the standing feet with bolts. There is only 1 option.

Agree with you there, if you would store her long-term standing, then, the bolted feet would be the best choice.

Oh that's perfect! Thanks so much for the fast response, my friend!